BOSTON — There are several Armenians who have been diagnosed with cancer and are seeking help from the Armenian Bone Marrow Donor Registry (ABMDR).
Debbi Margosian Chapman has been diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia and needs a stem cell transplant.
Because she is Armenian, her doctors believe her best chances of finding a match is within the Armenian community. It is easy to become a donor. The screening test is a simple cheek swab. Donating stem cells is similar to giving blood; a donor’s stem cells are removed and the blood is returned to the donor. Within a couple of weeks, donor stem cells are replenished. There is no pain, no surgery, no anesthesia and no cost to the donor.
Anyone in good health between ages 18 to 60 is asked to take a cheek swab and have their data entered in the ABMDR. A free cheek swab kit is available from Be the Match, sponsored by the National Bone Marrow Donor Registry.
There will be a free screening held in Chapman’s behalf on Sunday, September 2, at 9 a.m. at the Armenian Youth Federation Olympics Track and Field event held at Newton North High School, 457 Walnut St., Newton, Mass.
Her family is willing to pay $25,000 to the person who is a match for Chapman. There are about 200 Armenians in need of a stem cell donor. Armenian American Healthcare Professionals’ Organization has publicized two other cases, Irene Katrandjian and young Charlotte Conybear of Philadelphia, who also desperately need to find a match.
